A high school cheerleader on a dream trip to Hawaii to perform at a college football all-star game plunged naked to her death from a ninth-floor hotel balcony. An initial autopsy released Wednesday showed alcohol in her system but no evidence of foul play. Police on Tuesday arrested two men on suspicion of murder, but they released them later that day and on Wednesday said Lauren Crossan's death was classed as a "miscellaneous accident."

On a 9-degree morning thousands of miles away, a New Jersey suburb grieved for the 18-year-old as it waited for answers about her mysterious death.

"I can't even describe how much it hurts," said Erica Bauerlein, a senior from Randolph, N.J., who had known Lauren since both were 3 years old. "People were breaking down in school. I've never seen anything so somber since 9-11. The hallways were so quiet."

Crossan's body was found Monday morning by a hotel guest only hours after she had checked into the Hyatt Regency Maui Resort & Spa.

The initial autopsy "suggested alcohol was present but we don't have the quantity yet," Dr. Anthony Manoukian, Maui County medical examiner, said Wednesday.

No other drugs were found, nor was there any evidence of sexual assault or injuries not caused by the fall, Manoukian said.

On Tuesday, Maui police arrested two men, both registered to the room from which Crossan fell, on suspicion of second-degree murder, Lt. Tivoli Faaumu said. Donald L. Devorss, 19, and Erik B. Larson, 20, both of Folsom, Calif., were later released and were not charged.

Devorss answered a telephone call to his hotel room but said he had no comment and hung up. A subsequent call went unanswered.

The men told police that Crossan was in their room when they fell asleep early Monday. Her clothes and personal belongings were still in the room when police arrived to question them, but the men said they did not know what happened to her, Faaumu said.

A chaperone on the trip received a call from Crossan at about 1:30 a.m. Monday saying she was OK and would be returning to her room, Faaumu said. When she did not show up, the others went to look for her but could not find her, he said.

Carson Tani, deputy prosecuting attorney for Maui County, said the investigation could take several weeks.

Crossan was captain of the cheerleading competition squad at Randolph High School, about 30 miles west of New York City in an affluent area of New Jersey.

Crossan was one of three Randolph seniors selected by the National Cheerleaders Association to perform with nearly 600 other cheerleaders from across the country at the halftime show of the Hula Bowl.

The cheerleaders association is part of The National Spirit Group, of Dallas, which operates camps and competitions and sells cheerleading-related merchandise.

The girls raised money for the trip by selling candy and soliciting sponsorships from local businesses.

Crossan was a standout athlete, playing on the school softball team as a freshman and sophomore, and cheerleading for the wrestling, basketball and football teams. She also served as statistician for the basketball team.

"She was full of life, vivacious, certainly not a wallflower, and was loved and respected by every member of our squad," said her cheerleading coach, Sherry Tremper.

Standing outside the high school on a frigid afternoon, ice crystals forming in her still-damp dark brown hair, classmate Courtney Burbridge tried to remember how Crossan lived instead of how she died.

"She was always so happy, always smiling, always happy to see people," Burbridge said. "She was just a great person. We're all still in shock over this."



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Associated Press Writer Wayne Parry contributed to this report from Randolph, N.J.